Improvement in valve-gears for steam-engines



C. H. BREED.

VALVE-GEAR FOR STEAM-ENGINES.

No.171,500 Patented Dec. 28,1875.

MPETERS, FHOTO-LITHOGRAPHER. WASHINGTON, D O.

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UNITED STATES PAT T OFFICE. f

CHARLES H. BREED, OF MASSILLON, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENT IN VALVE-GEARS FOR DS'II'EAM-ENGINDES.

Specification forming ea of-Lctters Patent No. 171,500, dated December 28, 1875; application filed a June 23, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. BREED, of Massillon, in the county of Stark and State of Ohio, have invented certain new and useful is to afford means for reversing the motion of said engines, and for holding them stationary. It consists in providing the valve-box with a supplementary valve or valves to be worked by hand, and by means of which the course of the steam may be directed to either end. of the cylinder at pleasure, or an equal amount thrown on each side of the piston, for the purpose of holding it stationary and preventing any motion of the engine. My invention is particularly applicable to locomotive-engines, where its use would render unnecessary the ordinary cumbersome reversing devices, but may be applied to any engine using reciprocating valves. The details of construction involved in my invention will be hereinafter fully described and explained with reference to the accompanying drawing, in which like letters indicate like parts in the different figures.

Figure 1 is a vertical central section of a v steam-cylinder and valve-box having my supplementary reversing and holding valves. Fig. 2 is a similar section, showing said valves in position for holding the piston stationary. Fig.

3 is a similar section, showing a different po-' sition of said valves. Fig. 4 is a plan view of the bottom of the valve-box, showing the steam-passages leading from the valve-box to the cylinder. Fig. 1 is a sectional detail view.

A is the steam-cylinder, A the piston, and

v A the piston-rod. The shell of the cylinder is cast with a 'flat, table-like top, a, through which pass the steam-ports a a, and upon which is secured the valve-box B. B is the bottom of. the valve-box, through which are openings or ports I) b c c. In the under side of this bottom of the valve-box are out grooves or channels 1 1 and 2 2, from one end of each of the openings or ports just mentioned, the channels from the outer portsb b meeting and merging in a single groove or channel, 3, which leads to the steam-port a, and those from the inner ports 0 0 meeting and merging in a single groove or channel, 4, which leads to the port a.

D is a longitudinal partition, dividing the I valve-box into an upper and lower chamber, and d is a transverse vertical partition, dividing the lower chamber into two smaller chambers of equal size. E' E are slide-valves, one on each side of vertical partition 01. Each of these valves has an opening, 0 and 0, through it, and the two valves E E are connected by a rod, F, which plays through an opening in partition d. A stuffing-box may be arranged in this opening. The rod F is of such length that when the opening in one of the slides E or E coincides with one of the outer ports I) or b, the opening in the other slide will coincide with one of the inner ports 0 or c. To. the front slide E is attached a rod, f, which works through an opening in the front wallof the valve-box, fitting said opening snugly to prevent the escape of steam; or this opening also may be provided with a stuffing-box. The outer end of rod f is attached to an arm, G, which is fixed on the end of a short rockshaft, g, working in a journal-box on beam H. To the other end of this short rock-shaft is fixed a lever, G, to be worked by hand. On a locomotive-engine a rod would extend from the lever G to a hand-lever in the cab. In the partition D are two ports, d 61', opening respectively into the lower chambers of the valve-box on opposite sides of the partition d.

I is a slide-valve, having a single passage, t, through it, and two channels or grooves, jj, in its under side. These grooves extend from the edge of the slide to points near the opposide edge, and on a line with the end of the port 0'. When port '11 coincides with portal, as shown in Fig. 1, groove j coincides with port (1, and the end of said groove, which leads to the edge of the slide, then coincides with an eduction-port, o, in the side wall of the'valve-box, as shown in sectional View 1.

When port 13 coincides with port df', groove j will coincide with port d, and the open end of said groove with eduction-port o. Arod, i.

the valve-box to an arm, 70, attached to one end of a short rock-shaft l, journaled at its middle on beam H. To theother endof this rock-shaft l is fixed an arm, 70, from which a rod may lead to and be suitably connected with an eccentric on a fly-wheel shaft of a stationary engine, or on the driving-wheel axle of a locomotive-engine, and the said eccentric.

can be arranged to properly operate slide I.

I have not deemed it necessary to show a pitman connecting the piston-rod A with a fiy or driving wheel, noran eccentric and rod for operatingslide-valve I, as they may be arranged in any suitable and well-known manner applicable to stationary or locomotive engines, as .will be readily understood by persons familiar with the construction of such engines.

4 The operation of my invention is as follows Referring to Fig. 1,thepiston A is supposed to heat the end' of its strokein one direction, and the valve 1 in position to direct the steam so as to drivethe piston backto theopposite end of the cylinder. Steam comes't'rom the boiler through steampipe S, enters valve-box, passes through port '5 of slide I, through port 1 of partition D, through port 0 of slide E, through port I) of bottom B, through channel lin under side of said bottom,and through groove 3, which leads to porta'l of cylinder.

As the piston moves back thesteam infront of itis driven through cylinder-port a, through channel tin the under side of bottom B of valve-box,through channel 2,through port 0 of said bottom, through port [6'1 of slide E, through port (1 of partition D,through chan nel j in under side of slide-val e I, and oh through education-port 0 in side of valve-box.

attached to slide I, leads through the wall of Now, if, during thisbackstrokeof' this piston, the slides E E should be shifted from the position shown in Fig. l to the position shown in Fig. 3, (S ide I remaining as in Fig. 1,) the course of the steam will be changed from cylinder port a to cylinder port a, thus: throughport 4), port cl, port 6, port 0, channel 2, channel 4, port a, into cylinder, and reverse the motion of the piston, which would then drive the steam before it through port a,

channel 3, channel 1, )ort b, port 0, port d, groove j in under side of slide I, and oil 1 through the same eductionport 0 as before. By placing the slides E E in the position shown in Fig. 2, it will be seen that an equal quantity of steam will pass through all the ports of bottom B, as the divisions between the pairs of saidports are not wideenough to I 2. The valve E, having port e,incombination with bottom B,having ports b 0, arranged to each receive half the flow ofsteam from port 0, substantially as described.

Intestimony that Iclaim the foregoing as my own invention, I affix heretomy signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES H. BREED.

Witnesses:

WM. BEALE HALE, PHIL. W. HALE. 

